West Virginia bill with trigger for Medicaid cuts moved to House inactive calendar

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — Lawmakers in West Virginia have moved a bill that would have unenrolled 166,000 residents from Medicaid to the House of Delegates’ inactive calendar.

House Bill 3518 was originally drafted as a result of concerns that federal cuts to Medicaid funding would leave states left footing the bill, but the proposed legislation appears to be stalled.

A spokesperson for the West Virginia House of Delegates said Monday that state lawmakers have received “strong assurances” from Washington, D.C., that the federal Medicaid match is safe.

Under the Affordable Care Act from 2010, Medicaid went from a program primarily serving the elderly to expanded coverage to provide people ages 19 to 64 with incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level with health insurance.

For the states that agreed to the expansion, the federal government, since 2014, has taken care of 90% of the cost.

It is those under the expansion umbrella who would have been unenrolled had the bill passed and the federal government made cuts on its end.

The West Virginia House of Delegates’ inactive calendar is made up of bills and resolutions that were considered on the floor, but were moved off the active daily calendar by the House Rules Committee.

Bills on the House's active calendar take precedent over those on the inactive calendar.